Most bees have special pollen-collecting hairs on their hind legs and collected pollen is easy to see (Figure 6). Note the waist between the thorax and abdomen. Wasps’ hairs are not branched, while bees’ are branched, but you will need a microscope to see this. Wasps are much less hairy than most bees (Figures 2 and 6). Bees also have a constricted waist, but it isn’t readily visible. Similar to bees, wasps have four developed wings, long segmented antennae and a distinctly visible narrow “waist” (Figure 5) due to a constriction between the thorax and abdomen. Bee flies have a long proboscis (tongue) and feed on pollen and nectar. Different species can have transparent or patterned wings. Bee flies (Family: Bombyliidae)īee flies (Figure 4) are about 7 to 15 millimeters long and have stout bodies covered with yellow, black or brown hairs. Some hover fly larvae are aphid predators and provide biological pest control. They feed on pollen and nectar, often using the same flowers that bees do. Hover flies buzz and hover like bees around flowers. Some hover flies are quite hairy while others are not. Most hover flies are 5 to 15 millimeters long and have large heads with reddish or marbled black eyes, two clear wings and black and yellow color patterns on the abdomen and sometimes on the thorax.
Several hover fly species (Figures 1 and 3) resemble bees in coloration, behavior and size. Hairy honey bee (Apis mellifera) on sedum. Some flies, especially bee flies, can be hairy like honey bees (Figure 2), bumble bees and digger bees, and can hover and move quickly from flower to flower while foraging, just like bees. Most flies that resemble bees have short, three-segmented antennae, while bees have longer, cylindrical antennae of 12 (female) or 13 (male) segments. Bees have well developed forewings and hind wings.įlies have large compound eyes that occupy most of the head, while bees have narrow compound eyes on the sides of the head. Flies have a set of front wings (forewings), but the hind wings are small, knob-like balancing organs called halteres, so flies appear to have only two wings (Figure 1). Some flies, especially hover flies and bee flies, can be mistaken for bees because their body form, color and hair patterns, buzzing sounds and behaviors mimic bees. This brief guide will help you tell some of these insects apart. Whether you call them “bee-mimics,” “wanna-bees” or “yellow-stripey-things,” most are beneficial helpers in our yards and gardens. In fact, many insects imitate bees in order to avoid unwanted attention. Editor's note: This article was a joint collaboration between North Dakota State University and Michigan State University Extension.Įveryone knows bees love to visit flowers, but not everything you see visiting flowers or buzzing around the garden is a bee.
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